Uber and Samsung Team Up to Leverage Contextual Awareness on Galaxy S8 and S8+

Mobile innovator Samsung is always investing in the development of delightful apps and services that enhance the user experience on its mobile devices. An example of such innovation is Samsung’s recent technology integration with Uber to create and enhance contextual experiences with its newly announced Bixby on the Galaxy S8 and S8+. Before going to work, Bixby will present an Uber card to the user. With that, the user can request a ride by simply tapping the card. Is the next meeting across town? No problem — Bixby Home’s calendar card will show fare estimates (based on the current phone location) to take an Uber to the next meeting location.

Uber card in Bixby Home

People who haven’t used Uber yet get to see first hand how Uber can help fulfill their transportation needs. Uber users get quick access to current arrival times and pricing info.

Bixby leverages Uber’s Riders API to get real-time information such as available Uber products at the current location, the estimated time to pickup, and the estimated time and price to get to the user’s destination. A tap on the request button launches the Uber app using a Deeplink and populates the Uber product, pickup and dropoff location.

Building deep OS integrations

Bixby is a new, smarter way to interact with Samsung smartphones. It provides exciting opportunities to enhance the transportation experience through Uber.

Leveraging intent for transportation

Bixby learns user routines from phone interactions to detect transportation intent. Think of calendar events with destinations or commute schedules as examples. Bixby captures these intents and surfaces an appropriate card. The card shows information, such as time and destination. A great user experience captures the intent and anticipates user actions. The Riders API is a perfect fit for this scenario because it provides time and price estimates. Under the hood, Bixby works to the GET /estimates/prices and GET /estimates/time endpoints. For Bixby users, this becomes a magical moment where their phone not only reminds them of their schedules but also provides time and cost estimation to help them plan their transportation needs.

Displaying the trip status

Bixby comes with a rich UI to position itself as an information center for mobile phone users. Bixby detects if the Uber app is installed and surfaces ride related information in real time. With this capability, Uber users can check their trip status right from within Bixby Home. There is no need to open the Uber app — users can continue using Bixby to read news and social media feeds while staying informed about their trip status.